The house, being built of semi-green logs, burnt slowly. As it was consumed, they heard some of the sailors singing and yelling, and heard several pistol shots and a scream of pain. "Some of them are coming now!" announced Sam, half an hour later. "Everybody get back out of sight," cried Captain Blossom. There was a wild scramble, and in the rush Tom tripped and fell. His foot struck a stone, which went rolling down to the mutineers' feet. "Hi! hi! there they are!" came in a rough, thick voice. "Where?" roared back the voice of Jack Lesher. "Up there, among the rocks and bushes." "Let's go after 'em!" "Shoot 'em down, boys! They deserve it for burning up the ship!" Up the rocks came the hard-drunken sailors, accompanied by Lesher, and with Dan Baxter in their rear. "Back! back! All of you, stand back!" cried Captain Blossom. "Come a step nearer at your peril. We are all armed and ready to fire!" At these words the sailors halted for a moment. "Say, cap'n, why did you set the ship afire?" asked an unsteady voice. "We had nothing to do with that," answered Captain Blossom. "We were all over on this island when the blaze started." "It's a lie!" came in the voice of Lesher. "Of course it's a lie," added Dan Baxter. "They did their best to burn every one of us up. "It is the truth," cried Dick. "Now stand back, or we shall fire on you." "Come on!" yelled Lesher, and fired a pistol at those near the mouth of the cave. "If ever I get the chance to have you tried, every one of you shall be hung for mutiny and murder!" cried Captain Blossom, and then fired in return. The bullet hit Dan Baxter in the arm, and he fell back with a shriek of pain. "I am killed! I am killed!" he moaned, and ran down toward the beach. Then came a volley from the mutineers, followed by one from those in the cave. "Oh, what a close 'shave!" muttered Tom. A bullet had grazed his ear, cutting away one of his curly locks. Lesher was wounded in the shoulder, and in a moment more of the mutineers ran off, feeling that they were at a disadvantage. "They can see us out in the open, while we can't see them for the rocks and bushes," said one sailor. "Let us wait till morning "; and so it was decided. Inside of the cave a council of war was held, and it was decided to block up the entrance fronting the bay with large rocks, leaving only two loopholes open, for watching and for possible shooting. All of the wounded ones were cared for, and then a watch was set. In the meantime Bostwick was put at ease, and he told the particulars of what happened on the burning wreck, and how Lesher and Baxter had urged the mutineers to attack those at the house. The remainder of the night wore away slowly. Nothing more was seen of the mutineers, who had retired to the jungle, drank more liquor, and gone to sleep, Baxter with them, moaning and groaning over his wound. "I am going to take a look around," said Tom, early in the morning. "A look around where?" asked Dick.